Because Of the Life I Lead
by ReesesPieces2112
Summary: In which Oliver never thought his words would come back to bite him in the ass so hard. One-shots of various ways Oliver finds himself starting to regret what he said to Felicity.
1. You're going to pay for that

Felicity Smoak did a number of things, some of which included being completely stubborn and hard headed. But when it came down to moving on, she did just that…she moved on. Months after telling her he could never be with someone he truly cares about, Oliver Queen is surprised to find himself sulking at the bar of his own club as he watched Felicity have what looked like the time of her life with some guy that screamed loser.

Felicity could never really understand why she did what she did on most occasions. Such as why she started working for Oliver in the first place…or why she fell for him when she knew deep down that girls like her never end up with a guy like him. And yet, she often found herself unable to resist being near him, whether she's at the office or in the confines of his "lair". It didn't seem to matter that her affection for him grew on a daily basis, all she knew was that she couldn't stand idly by as he put himself in danger countless times.

John Diggle, Oliver's bodyguard and Felicity's friend, laughed at his spot from beside the hooded vigilante. "Told you."

"Don't need to hear it." Oliver replied through grit teeth, slamming his glass on the bar and ordering another one.

"Seems like she's having quite the time over there." Diggle continued to tease.

"I will not hesitate to put an arrow through you." Oliver threatened before turning in his seat in time to watch Felicity's "friend" lean over and whisper in her ear. His grip on his beverage tightened when he noticed a slight blush creep up her face.

"Bet you wouldn't mind putting an arrow through him right about now." Digg mumbled, taking a drink from his glass.

Oliver usually did a good job at keeping his emotions in check, and he knew he did one hell of a job keeping them from surfacing. But at this point in the night, all he wanted to do was barge over to them and drag Felicity away with the lame excuse that something had come up. He sighed as he realized he would never get away with it, his cover stories were never any good when it came to her.

"Oh, hello, Oliver." Felicity's voice caught his attention. She smiled when he looked up at her. "I didn't think you'd be here tonight."

"Well, it _is _my club, Felicity." He shot her a sarcastic smile. "I'm here every night."

"Yes, but what I meant was-."

"Who's your friend?" Oliver interrupted her sentence, switching his gaze from her to the man standing beside her.

"Oh." Felicity beamed. "This is Matthew Conrad. We dated back at MIT. He's in town for a while and we thought we'd catch up."

Oliver's jaw clenched and he plastered on a fake smile while taking a sip of his drink.

"Interesting." Diggle stated and stuck his hand out. "Nice to meet you. I'm John Diggle, a friend of Felicity's."

"Matt." Matthew shook his hand firmly, offering a friendly handshake between him and Oliver as well.

Oliver glanced at his hand then back at Felicity, who reached out to grab Matt's hand and guide it back down.

"Um, I'm sure you two are very busy." Felicity said, latching onto Matt's upper arm. "We'll just be going now."

"No, stay." Digg insisted. "Oliver was just about to tell us about a lost opportunity he recently went through."

Oliver dug his elbow into Diggle's ribs without drawing Matt's attention. Felicity, however, gave them a quizzical look.

"No, it's okay." She shook her head. "We were just about to leave anyways."

"But then I spotted you, Mr. Queen." Matt interjected with a smile. "And I just wanted to meet the man Felicity can't seem to stop talking about."

Oliver locked eyes with Felicity as she blushed and cleared her throat. "Is that right?"

"Of course I talk about you." She began. "You _are _my boss and having the opportunity to work with you the way I do just has me gushing." She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, counting backwards silently. "What I mean is-."

"What do you mean?" He asked, rising from his seat and stepping closer than she deemed necessary.

"Well, we have a big day ahead of us tomorrow." Matthew butt in. "Felicity is going to give me a tour of the city."

"Of course she is." Oliver smirked at her, watching her fidget with her hands and step away with Matthew to leave.

"Goodnight, Mr. Queen." She smiled politely and turned to go.

"Oh, Felicity." Oliver stopped them before she had the chance to run away. When she turned to look back at him, he took hold of her elbow and pulled her close enough to where she was sure he could hear her heart beat increase. His head dipped down to kiss her on the corner of her mouth, whispering, "We'll see you at work tomorrow."

All Felicity could do was nod silently, still dazed by the tiniest of kiss she had just received. It wasn't until Matt threw a possessive arm around her waist that she was pulled back to reality. She shot Oliver a glare, one that read "You're going to pay for that" and one at Diggle, who had been trying to contain his laugh.

* * *

**Give me a break guys. Arrow is my latest obsession and it's going to take some time to write the way it's needed for Felicity and Oliver. **

**Anyways, throw some suggestions at me (: **

**And review, review, review!**


	2. Let me down easy

Diggle knew Oliver was off his game the second he entered Verdant. Upon arrival, he had immediately asked of Felicity's whereabouts, to which Diggle was happy to share.

"She's with Barry." Diggle told Oliver.

"Again?" Oliver replied. "What is that? The fifth time this week?"

"Sixth." Diggle felt the need to correct him; Oliver had done nothing but dance around his feelings for Felicity ever since they met and now that she's found someone else, he can't seem to contain his jealousy.

"I need her here." Oliver grit his teeth, pulling his phone from his pocket and dialing her number.

"No need." Diggle took his phone and pointed to the dance floor of the club. There, in a blue dress, stood Felicity Smoak with Barry Allen, laughing at what Oliver was sure to be a lame joke.

"Good." Oliver nodded, taking a step in their direction, only to have Diggle stop him.

"Don't do this, Oliver. Don't go all 'psycho ex-boyfriend' on her, especially given that you were never together in the first place. Felicity will chew you up and spit you out if you go over with anything but a friendly greeting."

Oliver straightened his jacket and went ahead to Felicity and Barry. "Felicity."

"Mr. Queen." Felicity gave him a smile that made him wince; the formality between them ever since Barry arrived had him going crazy. He didn't want to go around calling her Ms. Smoak, he liked her first name just fine.

"Diggle told me you had other, more pressing matters to attend to." She snapped him from his thoughts.

"I did." He answered, glancing at Barry and the arm wrapped around his IT girl's waist. "Fortunately, for me, those matters took care of themselves."

Felicity nodded and looked up at Barry, who had struck up an interesting conversation with Diggle. She had avoided Oliver ever since she caught him and Sara in the foundry and ran out as fast as she could. The last thing she wanted was to go over how he didn't mean for it to happen, it just did. As much as she wanted to rip him a new one for telling her just a few short months ago that he could never be with someone he truly cared about and then sleeping with Sara, she didn't. That was an argument she wasn't willing to go through.

"Felicity, can we speak?" Oliver whispered, making her jump because she hadn't noticed he had gotten so close.

She put a hand to her chest and exhaled sharply. "Could you try not giving me a heart attack tonight? I can't think straight with you so close."

He couldn't fight the smile forming on his face as she began to ramble.

"I mean, not that I don't like being close to you. I do, I just don't like being so close that I can't seem to function properly. Not that you're that close right now, just close enough to-."

"Felicity." Oliver squeezed her hand gently, having laced their fingers together when she was too busy talking. "Can we please talk?"

Felicity nodded reluctantly and excused herself from Barry and Diggle. As Oliver was pulling her away, she caught the look of disappointment that flashed across Barry's face. "What is it?"

He turned to face her. "I want to talk about what happened at the foundry-."

"No." She put her hand up to stop him. "I actually _don_'_t _want to talk about it. It's none of my business. I understand it, I really do. You and Sara have always had history, she can take care of herself, and she can't put herself in as much trouble as I can. I'm just a normal girl who can hack into a security system when needed. Sara's practically Wonder Woman who can get herself out of any situation without your help. I get it, Oliver, all of it and I don't need you to let me down easy."

"Done?" Oliver asked patiently after she took a breath from her word vomit, as she called it.

When she nodded, he mirrored her actions. "Okay. One, Felicity you are so much more than just a girl who can hack into a security system. Two, you can take care of yourself in most situations, that one's on me. I can't take the chance that something could happen to you because I need you. And three, I didn't mean for you to walk in on what you did in the foundry. I know I said I couldn't be with someone because of my life, but what happened with Sara wasn't supposed to happen."

"Oh, save it." Felicity snapped. "You so meant for that to happen with Sara. If it wasn't supposed to, then why did you continue? Because you lied to me, that's why. It's not that you couldn't be with someone you really cared about, it's that you didn't want to be with me, so save it." She turned to walk away from him, but she was met with a pair of sad eyes. "Barry."

"I came over to see if everything was all right." He cleared his throat. "Obviously, they are."

"No." Felicity's hand shot out to stop him from leaving. "That's not…we weren't…"

"It's okay." Barry nodded, patting her hand. "I'll get your coat and we can go."

She nodded and let him walk away. Once he was out of sight, she turned to glare at Oliver only to find him looking at his feet as Diggle spoke sternly with him.

"What was that about?" Diggle hissed. "Oliver, what did I say? What was the first thing I said before we walked over to them?"

"That she'd chew me up and spit me out if I offered anything but a friendly greeting." He repeated Diggle word for word, chuckling a little and shaking his head. "And she did, Diggle. She did." He looked up in time to see Felicity exit his club with Barry.


	3. Selfish

**Yeah, this one really doesn't have anything to do with Oliver regretting his little speech to Felicity, but I was halfway through writing it before I realized none of it had to do with what he said. I hope you enjoy anyways (:**

* * *

After doing her best to keep herself from stretching her hand back and slapping him as hard as she could across the face, Felicity walked out of the foundry for a breath of air. She huffed and crossed her arms before she began pacing.

"Who the hell does he think he is?" She said to herself. "And what was that crack about Central City? I know people are dying, but he knows my life doesn't revolve around him. How dare he? It's not like I don't feel guilty that I wasn't here for the first attack, I totally am, I just couldn't do anything about it because the damage was already done. And I didn't mean to almost run him into a bus, it was an honest mistake. Not everyone can be at the top of their game. They get beat sometimes too."

She threw her head back and groaned in frustration, stomping her foot like a child and flailing her hands out to hit the air. It was when her hand struck something hard that she squeaked and jumped away.

"Oliver!" She snapped, looking up at him. "Are you insane? You nearly gave me a heart attack. And what are you doing out here dressed in your hood gear? Someone could see and mmph-."

Felicity's rambling was cut short by Oliver's hand placed over her mouth. He chuckled a little and wrapped his other arm around her waist. "I'm sorry."

She glared at him, nipping his hand so he'd let her talk. "Sorry for snapping at me or sorry for being a class A jerk?"

"Both."

"Well, apology not accepted." Felicity crossed her arms as best as she could given how tightly pressed together they were, which she tried not to focus on.

"Felicity, I am so very sorry." Oliver stared into her eyes. "I didn't mean anything I said back there."

"Then why'd you say it?"

"Because I'm so used to having you around that it was hard to cope without you."

His straightforward answer had her taken aback; he wasn't exactly one for being blunt unless provoked. "Couldn't you have just said _that_?"

"I should have." He agreed with a nod. "I guess I'm just selfish."

Felicity looked up at him with confusion. "Selfish?"

In the blink of an eye, he had her pushed against the wall with one hand braced beside her head as he leaned down and whispered, "I want you all to myself, Felicity. Your smile, your laugh, your brains, your body, I want all of it. I want you to wake up in my bed with my scent…"

Inside, Diggle shook his head, watching the scene unfold in front of him. He had told Oliver just the other day that he'd been confusing Felicity by pushing her away but trying to get her attention the second it's somewhere else.

Felicity swallowed the lump in her throat and tried to contain her breathing. "Well, that's…unexpected."

Oliver brushed his lips against her neck and placed a kiss on her pulse point. "I'm selfish because there's nothing I want more than this moment right now."

"This is…um…" She wanted to tell him that he needed to let her go. She wanted to brace her hands against his chest and push him away. But she found herself tilting her head back against the wall as he kissed around her neck. Instead of pushing him away, she grabbed onto his shoulders. "Oliver…"

He eventually found his way to her lips and tangled his hands in her ponytail, tugging on the band to let her hair fall loose. Hitching her leg around his hip and hiking her dress up just a little higher, he pressed his body into hers further. "Hmm?"

The moan Felicity elicited had Diggle shutting off the computer screen in a panic. "Okay, that's awkward enough." He went about his business; typing on the computer and getting whatever information he could on their case.

Outside, Felicity was doing her best to concentrate on what she was trying to say. "I…there's um…wait, wait!" She finally managed to push him back far enough to look at his face.

"Now?" He growled.

"You…I…we…You said you didn't want to be with someone you could really care about!" She blurted out. "So, what? This means you don't care about me? I'm just another hook up? Because I don't appre-."

Oliver silenced her with another kiss, hoping to leave her stunned enough so he could get a word in. He heard the "mmmph" from her mouth and he smiled, nibbling on her bottom lip gently before pulling away. "Can I speak now?"

Felicity nodded and gasped lightly when his head dipped down to whisper in her ear again.

"I know what I said and I'm sorry I said it. I never meant to leave you with the impression that I wouldn't ever consider you datable, Felicity." He nipped her earlobe. "I really do want you."

"Are you just saying this so I'll forgive you for that crack about Barry?"

"No, I'm saying it because I want you to remember what happened here today when you go back to him."

"Why are you doing this?" She whispered, avoiding his gaze. "I don't understand."

"I know you don't, Felicity." Oliver took her hand laced their fingers together. "But you know you can trust me. You know the risks and yet you still choose to stay by my side. I need you, Felicity. More than I've needed anyone in a long time and if you leave to go back to Barry, then I understand."

Felicity closed her eyes, as if trying to wake herself from a dream and let out a huge breath. She looked at him and saw the intensity in his eyes, opening her mouth to speak.

Diggle had averted his eyes and hid the smirk on his face when Felicity made her way back inside with a dazed look on her face. Oliver sauntered in behind her, looking rather smug…and satisfied. Diggle shuddered and shook the thought out of his head. "Everything okay with you two now?"

"Oh yeah." Oliver answered, feeling the jab in his ribs from the IT girl beside him.

"Diggle." Felicity said. "Will you teach me how to shoot an arrow?"

"Why?"

"Because." She turned to face Oliver and smiled sweetly. "I'm going to kill Oliver Queen."

Diggle burst out laughing as Felicity turned on her heel and sat in her chair, fixing her hair around her shoulders.

"What's with the hair?" Diggle contained himself long enough to ask, although he already knew the answer. He heard a "humph" from the hooded vigilante from the training mat.

"It's nothing." Felicity replied shakily.

"Are those…" He leaned in close, acting as if he was examining her. "…hickies?"

"No!" She squeaked, jumping from her chair.

"Well then, did you get into a fight?" He did his best to keep from laughing. "Did you use anything we taught you at least?"

"Yeah, Felicity." Oliver jumped up to hold on to the bar of the salmon ladder. "Did you?"

"I have things to do." She glared at them, snatching her phone up and exiting the foundry, rolling her eyes when she heard the laughter erupting behind the closed door. "God, I'm going to kill them."


	4. Promise

"_You_'_re irreplaceable_, _Felicity_."

"Really?" She said to herself after hearing Diggle walk away. "Let's try telling Oliver that."

As much as she hated the silence, she was thankful for it. It gave her the chance to gather her thoughts and realize how snarky she had been with Sara when all she'd wanted to do was help.

After rifling through what was left of her system and finding nothing to salvage, she wound her hand back and shot it forward, sending what used to be an important piece to her computers across the room with a frustrated yell echoing after it.

Felicity knew there were times when she needed saving and when she could handle everything on her own. This was not one of those times; she wanted to disappear, she wanted the floor to open and swallow her whole. This was her sanctuary, this was what she was good at and someone had infiltrated it, crashed it and she didn't have a choice but to watch it burn.

Who was she kidding? The thought that maybe she had deserved it lingered in the back of her mind. She let Sara and Oliver get to her when she knew better.

"Felicity?" Oliver had wandered back in, having forgotten his mask. "You still here?"

"Unfortunately." She sighed, turning to him. "What is it?"

Oliver's face softened once he realized that she had felt defeated. He moved to touch her arm. "Hey. It's okay."

"No!" Felicity burst out. "It's not okay! It's not! This is my safe haven, Oliver, and it was taken from me and it was my fault! God, it was all my fault."

"Hey, hey." He grabbed her face so she could look at him. "Felicity, none of this was your fault."

"Stop it." She slapped his hands away, letting the tears prickle down her cheeks. "Don't baby me, Oliver. I screwed up and now I've lost everything. All my data, a-all the research I've been doing. I just-."

"No one is blaming you."

"_I_'_m _blaming me!" She sniffled and tried to control her breathing. "_I_ couldn't concentrate, _I _didn't have my head in the game, my mind was off somewhere else and I c-can't-."

"Felicity, just take a breath." Oliver reached for her again, but frowned when she moved away.

"That's what I need. I need a breath." Felicity exhaled loudly. "I-I need to go."

"Go where?"

"Anywhere!" She grabbed her jacket and stormed away from him. "Anywhere that's not here."

He followed her out, ignoring the confused expressions of Sara and Diggle. "Felicity, just stop for a second and talk to me."

"Fine." She turned on her heel and faced him. "I can't do this anymore. I can't be around you because it hurts, Oliver. It physically hurts me to try and pretend everything's okay. What happened tonight is more than enough proof that I can't stay here."

"Whoa, Felicity." Diggle tried to interject. "Hold on. Wha-?"

"I need to leave." She deadpanned. "I need…to be on my own. I need to get away from…" She spread her arms out, indicating everything around her. "all of this. And you, Oliver, you really don't need me. You'll be just fine with Sara and Digg and if you really need another computer whiz, all you have to do is walk into the IT department again."

Diggle and Sara watched Felicity turn and leave them all dumbfounded. Oliver simply stood with his hands at his sides.

"That's it?" Diggle looked at him. "You're just going to let her walk away?"

"Yes." Oliver nodded. "Once Felicity makes up her mind, there's no changing it."

"Whoa, wait a minute." Sara scoffed a little. "You're kidding, right? What, one freak out and you're just going to stand there?"

Oliver ignored them, sliding his mask over his head and pulling up his hood; what could he do? What was he supposed to say? 'Sorry, I couldn't stop her because she left me numb and my body refused to move'?

"We have work to do." He cleared his throat and began walking away from the foundry, not really bothering to check if they followed or not.

Her words stung him; just walk into the IT department again? He remembered that day quite well and he didn't just walk in and ask the first person he saw. He sought her out by name. He wanted to see her specifically. She wasn't just some random IT employee, she was so much more.

"_Because of the life I lead_, _I just think it_'_s better not be with someone I could really care about_."

How could he have been so stupid? He had the chance to be more than friends, more than boss and assistant, more than the Hood and sidekick. He didn't take it. He should have and he blew it right out of the water.

Oliver could remember look of devastation that swept across her face before faking a smile and telling him he deserved better. Felicity had been right. He did deserve better, and he knew it was her. His need to constantly protect her clouded his need for just her.

"You need to go talk to her." Sara slapped his shoulder, breaking his train of thought.

"You heard her, Sara." He sighed. "She doesn't want to be around me."

"Maybe it's because you keep confusing her."

"Excuse me?" Oliver looked at her accusingly, but she stood her ground with her hands on her hips.

"You heard me. Come on, Oliver, wake up and smell the coffee. You're in love with Felicity Smoak and you had her on a pedestal. The second I show up, it's like she's invisible. I love you, Oliver, and I always will…but you are so dumb."

"Why do I feel like I'm getting an ultimatum from Thea?" He asked through grit teeth.

"You should be." She glared at him. "She wouldn't be nearly as nice as I'm being. She'd have killed you by now."

"Can we please just focus on the task at hand? Where's Diggle?"

"He went to find her. I don't know if you noticed or not, but poor girl's heartbroken." Sara patted his shoulder and stalked past him.

Oliver stared at the floor; he never meant to hurt Felicity, all he wanted was to keep her safe. He can't do that when she _wants _to put herself in danger sometimes. And while Diggle will hold a grudge for as long as it lasts, letting Felicity go will always be one of his better choices. She needs a normal life, a life where she can have friends and a social life instead of surrounding herself with life threatening situations every night.

If ever asked, Oliver will always deny his feelings for her because it was just easier than explaining his foul mood every time he'll look through the glass wall and see her replacement. He'll get a mouth full from Thea, disapproving looks from Diggle, and glares throughout the office but he won't care. As long as Felicity stayed away, she'd be safe.

* * *

He heard the familiar clicking of a keyboard as he entered the foundry later that night. Curiosity got the best of him and he walked inside with caution.

Felicity was sitting in her chair with a laptop in her lap hooked up to an old computer system.

Oliver quietly made his way behind her, setting his bow down on the way. Looking over her shoulder, he saw that she was transferring documents from the laptop to the computer. "Felicity."

She gasped and jumped up from the chair, knocking the laptop down and tripping over a chord at her feet.

"Careful!" He instinctively reached for her, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her close before she fell.

"I'm okay." Felicity whispered, putting her hands on his shoulders. "I'm okay."

"Okay." Oliver nodded, swallowing the lump in his throat and keeping a tight hold on her.

"Oliver? You can…let go now."

"Y-Yeah. I can…I can do that." His fingers spread along her back and massaged their way up to the back of her neck. "Or I could…"

Felicity shivered as his lips met hers in such a gentle way that she didn't expect.

Their kiss intensified as soon as she had shifted from one foot to another and Oliver had the chance to lean her against the desk.

The sound of the door to the foundry being closed made Felicity panic and shove him away with a little more force than intended. "Sorry! Sorry."

"It's okay." He laughed.

An actual laugh in she didn't know how long and it made her nervous. "Digg, hey."

Diggle and Sara looked back and forth between Felicity and Oliver.

"Are you okay?" Diggle asked Felicity. "Your face is all flushed."

"Hm? No, yeah, I'm okay. I was just uh, rebooting the system and trying to recover some old files at least."

"You're looking rather smug, Oliver." Sara observed.

"What?" He looked at her. "Uh, no. I was just-."

"Well, the reboot is almost done." Felicity interrupted. "I'm going to go now."

"Felicity, wait!" Oliver grabbed her and spun her to face him. He was about to speak when he looked at Diggle and Sara, waiting for them to take the hint and leave.

"Oh right." Sara pushed a protesting Diggle out of sight.

"Listen, I know I freaked out earlier." Felicity started to say. "But I meant what I said, Oliver."

"I know, but you never gave me a chance to speak."

"Well you didn't exactly stop me from walking away."

"I didn't know how." He insisted. "You weren't exactly willing to listen."

"What could you have said?

"That you are so much more than you give yourself credit for. That I'm sorry I take you for granted and I don't appreciate all that you've done for me, but Felicity come on. I didn't care about what happened to the system because as long as it wasn't you, I didn't give a damn." Oliver took a deep breath. "I don't want anyone else here. Felicity, I want _you. _Just you. You're not just some girl I took out of the IT department, you're _my _girl. My girl Friday and I wouldn't have it any other way."

"But Sara-."

"No." He shook his head. "Sara doesn't have anything to do with this. This is just me and you and I can't stand it if you walk away."

"Then promise me." Felicity bit her bottom lip. "Promise me that you're not saying this just because you're afraid of losing me."

Oliver took her hands and laced their fingers together, pulling her close. "Felicity Megan Smoak, I promise you that this more than just a tactic to get you to stay."

"Okay." She sighed. "Okay. I'll stay."

"Whoo!" Diggle and Sara came running in, high-fiving each other.

"It is about damn time." Diggle said to Oliver. "Don't screw it up."

"Hey!" Oliver defended.

"Leave him alone, Digg." Felicity warned.

"Oh I see how it is now." Diggle feigned hurt. "I am so disappointed."


	5. Mental Fist Pump

Oliver pinched the bridge of his nose, walking out without responding to Diggle's crack about Barry's interest in Felicity. It's not as if he hadn't noticed the looks, the smiles, and God knows what else Felicity and Barry shared in and out of his presence. With a worse excuse than his own, Oliver asked Diggle to look into Barry Allen because the kid's a worse liar than himself…and he was pretty damn bad at it.

"You're overreacting." Diggle said from beside him.

"You always said my cover stories were horrible. Well, his aren't exactly any better."

"Are you sure this isn't just about Felicity getting some undivided attention from someone she could really like?"

Oliver's jaw twitched and his hands balled into fists. "Why would that have anything do with this?"

"You just seem bothered by it, that's all." Diggle pushed a little harder; getting Oliver to admit his feelings for Felicity would be like winning a gold medal at the Olympics.

"I'm bothered by it because he's obviously lying to us." Oliver clarified, getting into the car.

"Okay, well if you're so worried," Diggle slid into the driver's seat. "Why are we leaving him alone with her?"

"Because she'd drain my bank account if I come to her with accusations and no proof." He grumbled, unbuttoning his suit jacket and sinking into his seat.

"Then why am I doing it? She could just as easily drain mine if she finds out I'm looking into him."

"That's different. She'd more than likely just be disappointed in you."

"Why are you so special?" Diggle smirked.

Oliver looked out the window of the car, replaying the moment he had told Felicity he couldn't be with someone he really cared about. Now he was sulking in the back of his car because she was attracted to some forensic scientist with a hidden agenda. If ever he had made a bad decision…

Diggle looked in the rearview mirror and kept a straight face, even though he'd like nothing more than to smile at Oliver's reaction to Barry Allen and their IT girl. Even if Barry had some secret thing going on, he was sure Felicity could handle it. While she may not have muscles, she has brains. She's liable to rip Barry a new one so bad, he'd never show his face in Starling City again due to shame. He shook his head after glancing back at the big baby. "There's no doubt in my mind that Barry's harboring his own secrets, Oliver, we all are. But if I look into this kid and nothing turns up, Felicity will kill us both."

"If nothing turns up, I don't plan on confronting him."

"Yeah, well, I should know something by the end of today, hopefully. Or at least in time for your family party."

"Why?"

"Because she invited him as her 'plus one'."

"How do you know this?"

Diggle sighed, not proud of what he was about to say. "She…confided in me that she was thinking of asking him because she felt a strong connection with him, her words."

More like Felicity had excitedly gushed about having someone to go to the party with since she had already asked before telling Diggle any of it.

Oliver snorted and huffed, crossing his arms. "Connection. What connection? Over computers? Really?"

"You said this wasn't about how she felt." Diggle countered. "You said it wasn't about her crush in Barry. Or was that a lie?"

"It's not. But she only just met this kid, what is she thinking inviting him?"

"I'm pretty sure it's fairly clear what she's thinking."

Oliver ignored Diggle's comment, rolling his eyes and realizing that…he was jealous. But he wasn't about to let Diggle know that, although he was sure the green-eyed monster reared its ugly head before he could even make sense of it.

He closed his eyes and imaging the look of disappointment and heartbreak on Felicity's face when Isabel stepped out of his room. Then he imagined the bright smile and playful banter she had with Barry, not really giving Oliver a second glance that morning. He remembered her little laugh when Barry had told that lame joke about CSI's carrying around plastic baggies instead of guns. He carried around a bow, for Christ's sake, if he wanted to tell a stupid joke about it, he would have.

"You're going to cut off the blood circulation in your hand." Diggle's voice pierced his thoughts.

Oliver looked down at his hands to find they had been clenched so hard that his knuckles were white. He quickly relaxed his grip and sighed. "Turn the car around, Diggle."

Diggle did a mental fist pump as he swerved and headed back to Felicity and Barry, going above the speed limit.

* * *

Once back, Oliver and Diggle heard the familiar laughter of one Felicity Smoak. A laugh that wasn't really her usual laugh. This one was more flirtatious.

Oliver tried to restrain himself from shooting a glare at Barry as he noticed Felicity had stepped just a little closer to him than when they left. He cleared his throat, making her jump and look over.

"Oliver, Digg." She smiled. "Forget something?"

"Yes." Oliver nodded. "I mean, no. Or yes. I-."

"Felicity could Oliver have a word with you?" Diggle decided to spare Oliver the embarrassment of spewing out another ridiculous lie. "In private?"

"Sure." Felicity answered with suspicion, eyeing them and smiling apologetically at Barry before walking away with Oliver. "So, what is it?"

Oliver was actually at a loss for words; he hadn't expected Diggle to shoo them off to talk, especially since he didn't know what to say.

"Oliver?" She laughed at the blank look on his face, which didn't happen often. "Are you okay?"

"I don't trust Barry Allen." He blurted before he could stop himself.

Felicity's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "I'm sorry?"

"He's lying to us, Felicity, to you." Oliver continued, wishing he could just be quiet. "How do we know he's not just after information?"

"I suppose we don't, but-."

"And how do we know he's not just helping the intruder who broke in?"

"I-."

"Exactly. We don't."

Felicity scowled at him. "I trust Barry. More than I've trusted anyone in a long time, Oliver."

"And your feelings for him?" He sneered. "Those aren't…part of your trust?"

"My feelings for him are exactly why I'm choosing to trust him." She snapped. "I am not having this argument with you right now. Our focus is on the intruder. Not my relationship with Barry."

"What relationship? You've known him for a day."

Felicity scoffed and threw her hands in the air in frustration as she turned to walk away.

Oliver, hoping she won't kill him, spun her around by the arm and pressed their lips together in a kiss; a hard, demanding, and possessive kiss.

One that actually had her reeling and caught off guard by the softness of his lips despite the roughness. She sighed, wrapping her arms around his neck and standing on her toes to reach his height. Even in high heels he was still taller than her.

His arms snaked around her tiny waist and crushed her to him as their kiss became soft and, dare he think, loving.

Felicity pulled back, out of breath, and felt him lean his forehead against hers. She wanted to be angry, she wanted to break away and slap him so hard that Barry and Diggle would hear it from inside. Instead, she smiled and held him closer. "I'm going to kill you."

"Okay." He laughed with a nod, splaying his fingers across her back, inching them up to the back of her neck and pulling her in for a kiss.

"I hate you." She mumbled against his lips.

"I know." Another kiss.

"Now I have to tell Barry."

"Yes, you do." Kiss.

"You're enjoying this too much."

"Maybe a little." Oliver smiled and pecked her lips once more. "So, about your plus one…"

"Oh my God." Felicity groaned, throwing her head back and sighing dramatically. She snapped her head back to look at him. "And what brought this on?"

"Diggle." He pressed a kiss against her neck.

"What did he do?"

_Opened my eyes to how much of an idiot I_'_ve been_. He thought, biting down on a sensitive part of her skin.

"Oliver!" She squeaked, squirming against his hold.

He simply laughed and lifted her off the ground, walking back inside with her clinging to him in worry that she'd fall. He wasn't going to tell her that Diggle's little comments throughout the day about her and Barry finally got to him. He wasn't going to share with her the fact that he had been jealous of Barry like a teenager instead of the adult he was. Oh no, he wasn't going to let her know any of that. Yet.

First, he just wanted to get through the soon to be awkward conversation with Barry.


	6. Say Something

**So, I wrote this while listening to A Great Big World's "Say something." It's one of my favorite songs and gave me a push to write this. Hope you guys like it (:**

* * *

Knuckles bloody, she pounded into the punching bag while the music blasted through her ear-buds. Her hand stung from the open cuts but she didn't care, she wanted to work out her frustration and she was. Being at the foundry that night wasn't her first choice, but she didn't really have anywhere else to train.

He stalked down the stairs slowly, Diggle, Roy, and Sara closely behind. His eyebrows came together in confusion when he heard thumping coming from the middle of the training mat. Oliver made his way around to find Felicity nearly breaking her hands from how hard she was hitting the punching bag.

Diggle winced as he saw the blood rubbing off the bag; he had never seen Felicity so hurt, so angry, so…fierce. Her grunting made him look away. If there was one thing Felicity could handle, it was her emotions and the fact that she now stood before them with bloodied hands from working so hard…well, it wasn't exactly something he'd ever wanted to see.

Roy stared at her sadly; he knew she had feelings for Oliver. Hell, the only who didn't know, or at least pretended not to, was Oliver himself. It's not that he didn't like Sara, because he did, he just didn't think it was right for Felicity to have to endure watching Oliver and Sara be in a relationship. She had chosen to stay, but it was harder on her than she'd ever admit.

Sara watched Oliver. She watched how he took a hesitant step towards his IT girl, but then got a hold of himself and decided against it. Her eyes shifted to Felicity, to the girl she thought was a little too fragile to be doing what she did with Oliver and them. Clearly, she had been wrong. Until now, she'd only ever seen Felicity at her computer, typing fast and swift. Looking at her practically kill the punching bag, shook her a little, realizing she had underestimated Felicity Smoak.

Felicity was out of breath as she took a step away and rested her hands on her knees. She looked at her knuckles and saw the blood trickling down her fingers, laughing a little and shaking her head. She reached down for the towel next to her feet and wiped her hands off, fully intending on discarding the towel later so Oliver and Diggle wouldn't find it. Her hands were shaking, but she didn't let it stop her from punching the bag with a little more force this time. She tried to remember the things Digg taught her, but she was really just going on what felt right.

Diggle could feel the pain wafting off Felicity and it hurt him that there wasn't a thing he could do to stop it. He looked at Roy, who seemed to be feeling the exact same way; though he and Felicity weren't close, Roy could imagine the hurt.

"That's it." Roy stated, willing his feet to move in order to get to Felicity.

"Roy." Oliver tried to stop him by grabbing his arm, only to have him yank it back and glare at him.

"Don't." Roy snapped. "Someone has to stop her before she hurts herself even more. I realize that it doesn't really mean much to you now that you have Sara to worry about, but I'm not going to stand by and watch Felicity torture herself because you're too stupid to realize what you're doing."

"Roy!" Sara snarled at him.

He ignored her, shaking his head and turning just in time to see Felicity stumble back and fall to her knees.

All of them moved to run to her, but it was Roy who got there first. When his hands touched her shoulders, she jumped.

"Hey, it's me." He soothed, squeezing her shoulders gently. He laughed when she reached up and pulled the headphones out of her ears.

"How long have you been standing there?" Felicity asked, trying to catch her breath.

"Not long." He lied, looking at her knuckles. Picking up the towel she had dropped to the floor, he reached for her hand and wrapped it.

"Felicity." Diggle said. "Are you okay?"

"Fine." She nodded, letting Roy stand her up and leaning on him for support. "Why?"

"Well, because your hand…"

Felicity looked at her hands that were wrapped in a blood soaked towel and laughed. "Oh, that. That's um…it's nothing."

Oliver opened his mouth to speak, but was once again beat by Roy.

"It's not nothing." Roy sighed, helping her to her computer chair. "Look at your hand, it's practically broken."

Sara had taken a step in their direction, but locked eyes with Roy and knew it wasn't a good idea. If he had no problem speaking the way he did to Oliver, she could only imagine what he had in store for her. She looked back at her boyfriend and registered the guilt that flashed in his eyes; she knew he told Felicity he could never be with someone he truly cared about, so it was quite the surprise when he kissed her that night in the foundry.

Oliver watched Roy tend to Felicity like he used to. It's not that he didn't try, but every time he did, she would step away from him. She would keep her distance and keep their conversations short. And then, Roy began bandaging her knuckles; he didn't miss the appreciative smile she had given Roy and it made his stomach churn. It took Felicity leaning in to give Roy a small kiss on the cheek, for Oliver to really understand what's happened.

All the glances she had sent him after telling her and Diggle he was with Sara, all the silence that followed after it…Felicity had broken. She had turned from him and never again looked him in the eye.

Felicity rose from her chair and thanked Roy. "It's late and I should get home."

"I'll take you." Diggle offered, handing her the coat that had been draped over her chair.

"No, it's okay." She smiled softly, taking her jacket and turning to leave. She nodded at Sara and Oliver as she walked past them. "Night."

Sara wanted to say something, anything. But she didn't know what she could say to make the situation better. She swallowed the lump in her throat as she watched Felicity leave, feeling defeated. She turned to the punching bag and felt the sudden urge to burn it; Felicity's blood had smeared all over it, blood from a woman who was stronger than she looked, blood from a woman who ignored the strong feelings she had for Oliver Queen for the sake of their team, blood from a woman who didn't deserve to watch the man she had fallen in love with be with someone else.

"You should make sure she's okay." Sara's voice caught everyone's attention as she turned to Oliver. "Go."

Oliver didn't hesitate to run up the stairs of the foundry, not even bothering to listen to Roy say it wasn't a good idea. He had to see her, he had to make her listen.

Twenty minutes later, he found himself rapping on her door, not expecting her to swing it wide open. He couldn't stop his hand, but thankfully she had absorbed all the training Diggle did with her, and she moved her head quickly.

"Oliver?" Felicity questioned, moving behind her door and keeping him from peeking inside. "What are you doing here?"

"We need to talk." Oliver tried to push his way through, but was surprised by how strong she was.

She snuck a look behind her before looking back at him. "Now's not a good time."

"Felicity, please." He pleaded. "I know how you've been feeling since Sara and I-."

"I need to finish packing." She said abruptly, leaving him dumbstruck.

"Packing?" He breathed. "Packing for what?"

Felicity shifted from one foot to another. "Barry woke up from his coma. I'm going to Central City to make sure he'll get around okay."

"When will you be back?"

"I'm…I'm not coming back. There's an offer at a big corporation in Central City in their IT department. They've been asking for months for me to join and now with Barry being awake…I can. The train's tomorrow."

"You were just going to leave without talking to us about it?" A surge of anger shot through Oliver as his hands balled into fists.

"I left my resignation letter with both Queen Consolidated and Team Arrow. Now…goodnight Oliver."

"Felicity." He tried to keep from closing the door, but she did just that. She shut the door on him and left him standing outside knocking on her door like it was on fire.

Inside, Felicity put her back to her door and slid down it, letting her tears flow and dropped her head against her knees. It was over. She was leaving Starling City and Oliver behind. She had hoped it would never come to this, but it had, and she hated it. She loved Oliver and being a part of everything he did. Unfortunately, she knew it wouldn't last forever and their time was done.


	7. Tell Her

**I decided to write this as a sort of sequel to "Say Something". I didn't really want to leave it like that, but I didn't have any idea as to how to go about writing a second part. But lo and behold, Jesse McCartney's "Tell her" comes on my radio and boom! I started writing. Ha (:**

**Now, I don't mean for Felicity to come off as weak in these two chapters, I actually commend her for choosing to stay by Oliver's side even though you can tell it really hurts. I believe everyone's entitled to a nice, good breakdown every once in a while, especially a character as strong as Felicity.**

**So, most of the reviewers were unhappy with where I took this one at the end, and I realized they were right. So, I read over this chapter and noticed that I could have done things differently because I actually wrote this in a rush because I was so excited about it. I changed a bit of the end so, I hope this version's a little better. (:**

* * *

"What do you mean she left?!" Roy hollered, balling his hands into fists and feeling his temper rise.

"Exactly how it sounded." Oliver snapped at him, leaning against the computer desk. "She said Barry woke up from his coma and she was going to take care of him."

"Yeah, because Barry's the only reason she left." Roy said sarcastically.

Sara and Diggle stood off to the side, watching and waiting to jump in when necessary. Of course, Diggle would have taken Roy's side even though he wouldn't admit it, because he had never seen Roy so passionate about anything other than his anger.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Oliver asked.

"Isn't it obvious?" Roy scoffed. "She left because you're an oaf, Oliver! She left because you refuse to see what's right in front of you!" He walked over to the punching bag and dragged it between him and his girlfriend's brother. "You mean to tell me, that you honestly believe she did this to herself because she was happy about Barry? Huh?! You really think she would have endured pain like this out of relief?! No, Oliver! She did this because she loves you and having to stick around here, watching you and Sara be a couple, finally got to her. That's why she left."

Roy huffed, putting his hand up to stop Oliver from responding. "Felicity left because she feels like there's nothing left for her here. In Central City, she has the chance to start a new life, have a new job, settle down with Barry Allen and maybe have kids and a white picket fence surrounding a house because that's what every girl dreams of. Just like every other girl, whether she admits it or not, she wants a cozy little house with kids and a man she can trust. And for a second, she was willing to give that all up to stay with you and help you, Oliver. But that all flew out the window the moment Sara stepped foot in the foundry. You told Felicity you could never be with someone because you could never put them in danger and even though Sara can defend herself, she's still someone you care about. It still stings, Oliver."

"She went to MIT, Roy." Oliver sighed. "She doesn't want that."

"No, she doesn't want that, and if you know she doesn't want it, then what the hell are you still doing standing here instead of out there trying to get her back?" Roy threw the punching to the floor and stormed up the steps to the foundry, mumbling to Diggle that he'd be keeping his distance for a few days and he doesn't really give a damn if anyone likes it or not.

Diggle sighed heavily, crossing his arms and turning to look at Oliver, who surprisingly didn't even try to defend himself from Roy's outburst.

Oliver looked up at his partner. "What do you think?"

"I think we all need to take a break." Diggle replied honestly. "We'll pick this up tomorrow." He stuffed his hands in his pockets and nodded at Sara before disappearing up the steps.

"Are you okay?" Sara asked after hearing the door closed.

"Fine." Oliver stood straight and started for the salmon ladder.

"Oliver, don't lie to me." She followed him. "Roy's right. We knew what this would do to all of us, and while Felicity did her best and I giver her credit for holding out as long as she did, because if it were me, I would have left a long time ago. She held together so well when you told her about us and I don't know what pushed her over the edge, but she was. She is the glue that holds your team together, so don't stand there and lie to me."

Oliver stared at the ground, realizing it was "point out the obvious and make you feel like an idiot" day. "What do you want me to say, Sara?"

"I want you to stop trying to convince me and yourself that you don't have feelings for Felicity. I want you tell me that you're going to Central City and you're going to fight for her because that is what you want to do. Because I know it is. I know you want her back and nothing has ever stopped you from getting what you want. So, please, just tell me…tell me you're not going to mope around and you'll take action."

What seemed like hours was only minutes when she didn't receive a response. She shook her head and grabbed her duffel bag full of her Black Canary gear. "Fine. Don't say anything. Be the broody, spiteful, pitiful man that you are."

Oliver heard her footsteps retreating and the door slamming, knowing she was just angry and lashing out. He wasn't going to Central City because Felicity had been adamant about getting as far away from him as possible. Roy had a point when he said she had a chance at a new life, which is what she needed, not the foundry, not the danger, not…him. He jumped for the salmon ladder bar and began climbing up, letting his own heavy breathing and metal clanking drown out his thoughts.

* * *

Felicity sat cross-legged on the chair beside Barry's bed; she had arrived just a little after he had fallen asleep. She had her nose stuffed in a book, finding herself having to start the entire page over because she couldn't pay attention as well as she'd hoped.

She eventually ended up just staring at the words as her thoughts shifted Oliver, to her decision to leave and the stupidity she felt once she had. She promised herself she'd never let her personal feelings get in the way of her job and what she believed in and realized that her departure was a cowardice attempt to forget the man she had fallen in love with. Shaking her head, she cursed herself for wanting to cry as she had in her apartment.

"Hey." The forensic scientist mumbled in surprise, stretching as best as he could. "What are you doing here?"

Felicity smiled through her tears and poured him a glass of water, handing it to him. "I was told you came out of your coma. I came to see you."

"Then what's with the suitcase?" He gestured to the bag beside her chair.

"Right." She nodded. "I took a job here with a corporation that's been bugging me for months to join them."

"What about Oliver?" Barry's eyebrows drew together in confusion. "Is everything all right?"

She did her best, she really did, but Felicity couldn't hold in the tears that began to flow as Barry reached for her in a panic.

Not really sure what else to do, Barry pulled her into his bed and held her to his side, running his hand up and down her arm in hopes of soothing her. "It's okay, Felicity. It's okay."

Felicity let herself relax in Barry's arms and, not knowing when her eyelids began to grow heavy, drift to sleep. Her pulse returned to normal and her breathing wasn't as erratic.

He wasn't sure what caused her breakdown, but he was glad she did it here with him instead of alone. He almost laughed at irony; she said she had come to take care of him, but here he was, comforting her and making sure she was okay. Her head rested against his chest and he found it cute the way her head rose and fell with his breathing.

A knock on his door drew his attention away from Felicity and to one Oliver Queen, who hadn't planned on being there but couldn't stand the silence at the foundry. He cleared his throat and stepped in to quite a sight. "Oh. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to…Felicity said you woke up and…I should go."

"No, it's okay." Barry stopped him. "Uh, thank you for coming even though it's not really for me."

Oliver nodded and shifted awkwardly; he knew Felicity would be there, but had he known he'd find them in such an intimate position, he would have never came. "Is she…okay?"

"You tell me." Barry countered. "All I did was ask about you and suddenly she's crying in my arms."

A pang shot through Oliver's heart, knowing he had been the cause of her pain when he had promised to protect her at any costs. "She...we had a disagreement."

"What kind of disagreement?" Barry wondered, trying to understand what kind of fight they had that could cause her to come all the way to Central City and cry.

"I reconnected with an old girlfriend." Oliver answered truthfully; he had already dug his grave so deep that there was no reason to lie anymore.

"Oh." Barry nodded, looking down at the blonde girl in his arms and running his hands through her hair. "I see."

"I'm sorry?"

"Nothing." He shook his head with a small chuckle. "It's just that…I thought we had a real connection back in Starling City, but turns out she wanted to be just friends because she had feelings for someone else." He looked up and Oliver and stared at him. "Feelings for you. And now here she is…crying because of you. You know, she speaks so highly of you and you just… 'reconnect' with an old girlfriend."

Oliver let out a heavy sigh and stared at his feet. "Yeah, I suppose that was really low of me, wasn't it?"

"You have no idea." Barry shook his head. "Fix it, Oliver. Fix her."

"I would if she'd listen to me."

"Then make her."

"Felicity's not one to be easily persuaded." Oliver leaned against the wall.

"No, but you shouldn't let it stop you from trying." Barry shifted ever so slightly, stirring her from her slumber. "Felicity."

"Hmm?" She mumbled into his chest.

"We…you have a visitor." He laughed at her eyes shooting open and her body bolting up to see who it was.

"Oliver?" Felicity questioned. "What are you doing here?"

"I needed to speak with you."

"Now?"

He nodded, pushing off the wall and exiting the room, hoping she'd follow.

She looked up at Barry and got out of bed as he nodded and waved her off.

"What is it?" She said as she stepped out of his room. "I already told you-."

"You never let me give you my side of the argument." Oliver interrupted her. "Now, it's my turn."

Felicity crossed her arms and ran a hand through her messy hair, waiting for him to speak.

"I'm sorry I assumed you were leaving because of my relationship with Sara."

"Not again." She groaned, turning to leave but was stopped by his hand wrapping around her wrist gently.

"Felicity just wait and hear me out." Oliver pulled her close. "It's wrong of me to jump to conclusions. I understand that you want to be here in Central City and I understand why, but you need to understand that I'm not one to just give up. Don't think you can get away from me that easily because I'm not willing to let you go." He pulled her to his chest and engulfed her in a hug. "You are the only light in my dark life, Felicity. You make me believe in myself in more ways than I can count ever since I got back from the island. There's no one I can turn to the way I turn to you and I refuse to just let you walk away."

Felicity huffed and let her arms hang at her sides, fighting herself. "You have to. You shouldn't be here, Oliver. What about Sara?"

"Sara and I are over. Almost losing you has showed me that I need to rethink my priorities."

"Just…stop." She pushed away from him. "I've made my decision and I'm standing by it. Oliver…what are you trying to do? Get me to go back? Because I'm not."

"I'm trying to get you to see my side, Felicity." Oliver grit his teeth.

"Your side about what? What are you doing here?" She repeated.

"You know why I'm here."

"Oliver!" She snapped. "_What are you doing here_?"

"I'm here…" He breathed. "Because I miss you, Felicity. I'm here because I'm an idiot for letting you walk away and needing everyone else to tell me what I should have done when I should have _known_ what to do. I admit, I wasn't going to come after you and it took some pushing from Sara and Roy and I'm ashamed of it. I thought it would be better for you here. I stood in the foundry for about ten minutes before I was out the door and on a train."

"Why ten minutes?" She pushed, crossing her arms. "What did you think about in those ten minutes?"

"What it would be like to be without you." Oliver answered immediately. "I tried to imagine trying to do what I do without you…and I couldn't. So, I'm here because I love you, Felicity."

Before she could stop herself, she launched at him, throwing her arms around his neck and kissing him.

Oliver stumbled back with surprise, but wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her off the ground. Pulling away with ragged breath, he leaned his forehead against hers. "Does this mean you're coming back with me? Because Roy is really itching to kill me."

Felicity laughed and nodded her head, leaning in for a softer kiss. "I might just let Roy beat you up."

"Pft." He smirked. "I wouldn't take his threats too seriously. I have better training."

"Mmm. I wouldn't count him out just yet." She joked, patting his shoulder as he put her back down. "I'll get my suitcase."

"What about all your other boxes?"

"I was going to get them later. I just brought what I needed for now." Felicity smiled and walked back into Barry's room, explaining how glad she was that he was okay and that she'd visit often. She was relieved when he took the news that she was leaving so well. Waving goodbye, she took Oliver's hand and made their way to the car outside the hospital.

Felicity stopped short when she saw Diggle waiting by the door with a gin on his face. She turned to Oliver, who laughed.

"Sara and Roy are in the car too." He explained just as Roy burst through the door, running to her and throwing his arms around her to spin her around.

Sara stepped out of the car with a smile and nodded at Oliver, proud that he chose to overlook his pride and go for what he really makes him happy, which was Felicity Smoak.


	8. Everything's going to be okay, right?

**I'm going back a little bit, guys. This one's based off of "Heir to The Demon". Most of it is taken right out of the episode but with my own little spin at the end.**

* * *

She was out of it, he could tell; her eyes were glossed over as they were glued to the ground, her eyebrows drew together in confusion every few minutes, and her body never left her chair.

"Felicity?" Oliver tried, jumping down from the tire he had been beating with a sledgehammer. He waited for her to look at him, but she didn't seem to register his presence even though they'd been there for almost two hours. "Felicity!"

"What?!" She jumped and looked at him with her hands braced on the armrests of her chair. She blinked and whispered, "Sorry. What?"

Oliver tilted his head slightly and observed her. "Are you okay?"

"Uh, yeah." Felicity moved to stand up. "I'm fine. It's just…things…in here." She took her index fingers and circled them about an inch or two away from her head.

He was about to speak until Sara came in, announcing that the League was adamant about not letting her go. He nodded and turned back to talk to his girl Friday, but in came Diggle with Laurel's blood work and little by little, Oliver was losing his opportunity to talk to Felicity about what was bothering her. And suddenly, he found himself totally engulfed in Sara and Diggle's conversation.

Felicity's gaze returned to the floor; Moira Queen had threatened her…with Oliver. With his friendship and his trust. She closed her eyes and sighed heavily.

Would he really hate her?

She shook her head of the thought; Oliver is more than reasonable…but he loves his family. It's her word against Moira's, it would never stand.

Standing from her chair, she told the rest of the team that she needed some air and proceeded to walk outside where she leaned against the wall and let a few tears prickle down her cheeks. She couldn't lose Oliver. She just couldn't.

* * *

Oliver was minutes away from introducing his mother when Diggle came up and asked about Sara, to which Oliver replied that she wasn't doing well and he needed Diggle to pick up on Nyssa's whereabouts. After Diggle nodded and walked away, Oliver turned to a distracted Felicity only to have his mother come up behind him.

Moira smiled at her son, briefly acknowledging Felicity, and gave him a hug, joking about how nervous she was and that she hadn't felt that way since both of her weddings.

Oliver laughed with her but didn't miss the little exchange between his mother and his I.T. girl as his mother was hauled away. He reached for Felicity, but she took a few steps away and leaned against the railing in front of her.

"Felicity." He grabbed her arm gently. "Fe-li-ci-ty." He punctuated. "What is going on with you? And don't say-"

"Nothing." She interrupted him.

"Don't say 'nothing'. The truth, please?"

Felicity looked around, "You might have noticed that I talk a lot."

"It has not escaped my attention." Oliver smiled slightly.

"You might have also noticed that I don't talk a lot…about my family."

"I have noticed that." He put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed gently; a gesture that was all too familiar between them and he thought nothing of it, until she moved to drop his hand.

"My mother is…" She laughed slightly. "She's my mother."

Oliver nodded with understanding and patience as he knew it would take a while to get to her point.

"My father is…" Felicity began again. "Well, I don't really know what my father is 'cause he abandoned us. I barely remember him, but I do remember…how much it hurt when he left."

Her explanation may not have made much sense to him but in her mind, she knew where she was going with it, and it's why she let a few choked sobs out. "And just the…the thought of losing someone that important to me again-."

"Hey." He soothed, putting his hands on her arms and letting them wander down. "You're not going to lose me. Whatever it is, that's bothering you, is it about your family?"

"No." She gasped lightly. "But it's about yours."

Oliver shook his head, beyond confused and tried to comprehend what she meant. "Felicity, I don't-."

"Merlyn is Thea's father." She blurted, watching the devastation sweep across his face as the news sunk in. She caught Moira's eye as Oliver slowly turned in the direction of his name, waiting to make a speech on his "wonderful" mother. In that moment, Moira knew that Felicity had told him, and she glared at her.

Felicity didn't waste time turning on her heel and speed walking the hell out of there. Yes, she wanted to stay for Oliver, but the power Moira Queen had over her was enough to send her running. She felt foolish since she should have known Oliver would protect her and would no doubt take her side, but it was still a scary thought.

She didn't even realize that she was already on the street, hailing a cab, and remained frozen in her seat until she arrived home. IT was when she had stumbled into her apartment that she fell on her couch and let the tears come out.

Felicity had done it. She had told Oliver the truth and now…now she wasn't sure what happened from there. It was hours before her eyelids grew heavy and she couldn't fight her sleep anymore.

* * *

Felicity's steady breathing is what kept him calm. He towered over her, but it wasn't in a threatening way. He took note of her tear-stained cheeks and how puffy her eyes were. As he bent down to her level, he moved his hand to sweep stray locks of her hair from her face.

Felicity let out a soft moan as she turned into the warmth of his hand and sighed contently. It was a simple dream, really; in an alternate universe, her and Oliver had been enjoying a rather nice day hold up in her apartment, watching movies, talking, and laughing. It was so cheesy that she was aware it was just a dream, but still…the comfort in the warmth against her cheek seemed all too real. Then she realized…

Bolting up, Felicity began to scream and thrash around while flailing her arms about.

Oliver was quick to restrain her arms, but it was rather difficult to muffle her screaming and he began to think that maybe sneaking into her apartment wasn't the best idea. "Felicity! It's me!"

"Oliver?!" She panted, relaxing and slumping forward to lean her head against his chest. "What the hell?"

"I came to check on you." Moving to sit next to her, he held her close to his side. "Are you all right?"

"Shouldn't I be asking you that question?" Felicity let her head fall onto his shoulder. "I'm sorry I took off. I should have stayed, I should have-."

"I confronted my mother." Oliver blurted out. "I told her I'd keep up appearances for Thea's sake…but I'm not sure I can do it."

"Of course you can." She reached for his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Is there something else going on?"

Oliver looked down at their hands; he had left the Queen mansion in anger and his first thought was to head to the foundry, but found himself standing on the fire escape across from Felicity's building. He knew Sara would have been training at the foundry and knew where it would go if he met up with her. But there was a certain kind of comfort in Felicity's embrace that he couldn't find in Sara's, it's why he was sitting in her apartment with the intention of asking if he could camp out on her couch for the night.

Felicity was about to repeat her question when she felt him flip his hand over and tangle their fingers together, causing her to look down. She laughed a little at the contrast in their hands; his being quite large, and hers being fairly small.

"Can I stay tonight?" Oliver asked softly. "On the couch."

"Sure." She swallowed loudly. "But…we're both adults, I'm sure we can handle sharing…the bed."

He nodded with a smirk forming on the corner of his mouth, but refrained from letting it show. "Shall we go to bed then? It's late and I didn't mean to wake you up the way I did."

"Okay." Felicity untangled herself from him and began to make her way to her bedroom with him close behind.

Oliver didn't wait for an invitation as he flung himself onto her bed; the night's events had drained him and if it weren't for Felicity, he wasn't sure how much longer his mother would have lied to him. But it wasn't the lie itself, it was that she was responsible for more deaths than he ever wanted to hear about…and she threatened Felicity.

"Hey." Felicity whined, smacking his knee lightly and squealing when he grabbed her hand and pulled her onto the bed. "Oliver."

"Sleep." He mumbled, nuzzling his face into her hair.

She rolled her eyes playfully as she pulled off her glasses and reached over to set them on her nightstand; she didn't know what had brought this side of him out, but she wasn't about to protest. "Oliver, everything's going to be okay, right?"

Was it?

Oliver smiled and kissed the top of her head, curling his arm around her waist. "Yes. Everything's going to be okay."

"And your mom-."

"Will not come anywhere near you." He assured. "I will protect you, Felicity, even if it's from my own mother."

Felicity nodded, looking up at him to kiss his cheek before turning quickly and facing her bedroom door as an attempt to hide her blush.

* * *

**Not sure if I want to leave it there or if I might edit it later.**

**As for my other Oliver and Felicity story, I know I'm way behind on updating, but the next chapter in it is supposed to be rated M and I'm not very good at writing it, so if you guys want to throw some stuff at me that I could maybe put in there, it would definitely get the story back on track. Thanks, guys **

**Much love,**

**ReesesPieces2112 (:**


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